Social and behavioral science has for decades studied and recognized leadership as a social exchange between leaders and followers. But leadership is rather complex, and as such, it tends to lead to an increased interest within and across different disciplines. This book is an attempt to provide theoretical and empirical framework to better understand leadership challenges in various contexts. The authors cover an array of themes that span from an individual level to an organizational and societal level. In this volume, two sections are presented. The first section based on individual level focuses on different leadership styles and abilities, and the other section provides theories to understand leadership in public administration, in industrial settings and in nonprofit organizations.

The development of gender differences as an area of research has been rapid over the last decades. Varieties of studies have focused on the gender differences as well as the similarities of women and men. The common purpose of the research attempt is to find out the possibilities and even the consequences of gender differences and the impact on human beings on one side, and social and cultural environment on the other. This book is an attempt to provide theoretical and empirical framework to better understand gender differences in various contexts and on different levels. Therefore, the contributions cover an array of themes that span from an individual level to an organizational and societal level.

Systemic violence against women in the military has existed for decades, but they have mostly refrained from public resistance. However, in the context of the #Metoo‐movement in Sweden, 1768 women published a call for an end to violence and sexual harassment in the military. We analyze this call as a public resistance effort against the military and find that #Metoo is: 1) challenging the norms of the hyper‐masculine military organization, making resistance towards it visible, and 2) resisting the practices of sexual harassment and lack of responsibility in the military organization. The military organization is questioned when it comes to norms and practices, but there are variations in whether the social order of the military is truly challenged. Still, the call highlights the fragmentation of this “last bastion of masculinity”. More research is needed on the erosion of the militarized norms and practices and the effects of the call.

The purpose of this study was to develop a theoretical understanding of leadership during a complex rescue operation following a major disaster in a foreign country. The analysis followed a grounded theory approach. Seventeen informants from three Swedish authorities were interviewed on leadership in the emergency handling of the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia. A theoretical conceptualisation was developed which includes three superior categories: antecedent conditions, situational constraints and core aspects of leadership. Within the last-mentioned superior category a core variable was identified: a balance between the need for structure and the need for freedom. Leaders who strive to create structure at the expense of freedom of action are less inclined to delegate and more likely to wear themselves out. Conversely, those who strive to create great freedom of action bypass many links in the organisational chain, thus 'short-circuiting' the organisation as a whole.

Grounded Theory (GT) is a research method that allows the researcher to make discoveries withouta priori knowledge, and allows an open mind not an empty head. The use of this method is also desirablefor serendipity to occur in the research process. This article therefore aims to chronologically presenthow serendipity has grown over time in the use of the GT method in a field of research focusing onhighly demanding conditions such as disaster management and military operations. We will discussa new concept, namely, reflexive serendipity, which encompasses the conditions required for makingdiscoveries in the interview analysis. These may be contextual aspects and the role of the researcher,which includes having an open mind and the necessary perseverance and discipline to be able tosucceed with GT and serendipity.

Swedish healthcare has undergone continuous development over several decades. Today, legal responsibility is shared on the local and regional levels, i.e. between municipalities and county councils. The purpose of the present study is to gain a deeper understanding of boundary spanning roles and strategies involved in municipal and county council collaboration. A grounded theory approach was used. Fifteen informants from several Swedish health care authorities were interviewed. A tension exists between preserving boundary strategies that stifle collaboration and boundary spanning strategies that facilitate it. The way boundary spanners manage their role is assumed to influence the centre of gravity for this tension and thus the combination of favourable boundary spanning strategies and favourable boundary spanning roles is one way of getting the current form of collaboration to work.

On April 29, 2003, a catastrophic flood occurred in the Argentina city of Santa Fe de la Vera Cruz. Soon, the disaster became a political issue, as they had made serious accusations against the authorities and decision makers regarding negligence, corruption and lack of disaster preparedness. A local protest movement emerged, claiming both the allocation of responsibilities and financial compensation for the losses suffered by the victims. This article analyses the role of material memory and oblivion on the post disaster scene, more specifically, how different social actors in Santa Fe used places and objects in the contentious making of a disaster memoryscape. The analysis is based on ethnography from transtemporal translocal and field research conducted in Santa Fe between 2004 and 2011, and applies anthropological and sociological theories of memory to analyse these processes.

This special issue focuses on the phenomena of disasters and crises, and how such extraordinary and disruptive events can be understood from the perspective of social anthropology. Critical events are not unique to Latin America, yet the impact of hydro-meteorological and geological disasters have dramatically increased in the region in the last century (IDB 2010, UNISDR and Corporation OSSO 2013) and many countries have historical and recent experience of profound social, political and economic crises. They are complex challenges for societies to manage, mitigate and reduce, which is why social science has a major contribution to make in understanding both the causes and the effects, and forward sustainable solutions. This special issue presents four articles based on empirical cases from Latin America, with an emphasis on Argentina and Brazil, which demonstrate the anthropological contribution to the understanding of critical events. The authors make no claim to provide a complete view of the anthropology of disasters and crises in Latin America, but rather to account for a growing research field in the region, which is already making important contributions to multidisciplinary studies of critical events, and to the policy development of disaster risk reduction and crisis management.

Flooding has long been a recurrent problem in the Argentinian city of Santa Fe, mainly affecting the poverty-stricken suburban outskirts. In 2003 one of the worst floods ever occurred, which also affected residents in the middle income sectors who had never been flooded before and who reacted with an extraordinary process of commemoration and protest against the government for its lax disaster management. Paradoxically, most other past disastrous floods in the city’s history seem to dwell in the shadows of social oblivion. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in the years 2004–2011, this article analyzes how local flood memories are made through daily life practices and places in the suburban outskirts, more than through public commemorations, which has implications for vulnerability and risk.

Receiving support and help for physical injuries when returning from a military operation is natural and fully acceptable. As far as doing the same thing when having mental illness is not as likely to happen. The shame of admission in front of the people around you holds you back. The problem might be stigma; you do not want to be seen as odd or different, seen as someone who mentally could not cope with the experience.

If the need for care is unknown to the Armed Forces then there will be an unknown number of individuals who do not receive the support they are entitled to by law.

This thesis aims to investigate how much impact the fear of stigmatization is after an international military operation.

Purpose – This study aims to examine how authentic leadership relates to risk perception in safety critical organizations (SCOs). It is hypothesized that authentic leaders influence risk perception through the mediating effect of safety climate.

Design/methodology/approach – Using a survey design, the variables were assessed in a cross-sectional sample of 293 offshore oil installation workers from a single company.

Findings – The authors’ findings show that follower ratings of authentic leadership are negatively related to risk perception and positively associated with ratings of safety climate. Controlling for personality characteristics and leadership responsibility among respondents, the results confirm the hypothesis in that safety climate mediates the relationship between authentic leadership and risk perception. Safety climate had the strongest relationship with risk perception when assessed as a higher order construct.

Originality/value – This study is one of the first to investigate the relationship between authentic leadership and safety. The results indicate that authentic leadership and safety climate are important factors that relate to risk perception in SCOs. The authors’ findings suggest that SCOs should consider recruiting and developing authentic leaders to foster positive safety climates and risk management.

Previous research has shown that psychological capital (PsyCap) is associated with desired employee behavioral and performance outcomes. Extending previous research, we examine, in two studies, if the PsyCap of Norwegian air traffic controllers is related to their perceptions of safety climate. Based on bootstrapping procedures, results from Study 1 (N = 77) and Study 2 (N = 38) revealed that PsyCap was positively correlated with safety climate. In Study 1, PsyCap explained 31% of the variance in safety climate. Controlling for mediating effects of positive and negative emotions in Study 2, PsyCap explained 15.5% of the variance. These results provide first-time empirical evidence linking PsyCap to safety climate in safety critical organizations.

Social workers working with individuals, who are vulnerable and in need of help in different situations, face great demands. They need to be able to respond to people with different kind of needs, yet at the same time handle organizational requirements. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to contribute to an increased understanding of the phenomenon of job satisfaction, its meaning for professionals in the field of social work, and what affects job satisfaction. The study was performed in accordance with classic grounded theory, and all data were collected through three semistructural interviews. The results of the study generated a theoretical model that illustrates how the phenomenon of “work satisfaction” can be understood and reached through a process of balancing, maintaining, and recreating professional pride and dignity in the field of social work. The discussion ends with suggestions for further studies, methodological discussion, and proposals for practical implications.

Aims: In response to the 2009 outbreak of A/H1N1 influenza, Swedish authorities decided on a programme for universal vaccination. Over 60% of the population received at least one dose of vaccine. This study examines demographic factors and perceptions related to the decision whether or not to become vaccinated. Methods: A combined web/postal survey was conducted (n = 1587, response rate 53%) in late spring 2010. Questions reported here concerned perceptions, precautionary behaviours and vaccination decision. Results: Main reasons for becoming vaccinated were concerns about spreading the disease to relatives or in the community and confidence in the good effect of vaccination. Vaccination rates were higher among women, those with young children or belonging to a risk group. Main reasons for abstaining were belief that the flu was not a serious threat, low risk of spreading the disease, concern about side-effects and perceived uncertainties in information. Three profiles representing different patterns of thought and beliefs were identified by cluster analysis, respectively labelled as a vulnerable, a trusting and a sceptical group. Vaccination rates and precautionary behaviours were demonstrated to differ between these groups. Conclusions: Perceptions relating to the 2009 pandemic are likely to influence uptake of vaccination in the future. Authorities need to be aware of different patterns of beliefs and attitudes among the public, and that these may vary in different phases. Communication of risk needs to be dynamic and prepared to engage with the public before, during and even for some time after the acute risk period.

Military activities inevitably include an element of calculated risk taking, while at the same time the unnecessary taking of risks must be minimized. Within the context of the specific mission and situation, a number of factors relating to demographic variables, traits and beliefs may influence individual inclinations towards risk behaviour. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between such factors and individual risk propensity. Questionnaire data were gathered from two samples of Swedish soldiers and officers (N = 169) under contract for international missions. Data were analyzed using regression and cluster analyses. Our results show that demographic variables as well as traits and safety values constitute important explanatory factors of individual variations in risk propensity and sensation seeking. Men demonstrated a more skeptical view of safety measures and a higher risk propensity than women. Individuals with a higher degree of risk propensity and sensation seeking tendencies seem to be characterized by a lack of deliberation as well as a skeptical attitude towards safety issues. Furthermore, different “risk profiles” could be identified based on variations in risk propensity, impulsivity and safety values. The results highlight relevant aspects for identifying functional as well as non-functional risk takers. The implications should be of interest for recruiting processes as well as for training and leadership education.

The purpose of this study is to investigate what influences the formation of a common operating picture and situational awareness during collaborative efforts to deal with complex disasters. Particular focus is given to the relationship between the operating picture and situational awareness. The study was conducted using qualitative interviews and a grounded theory approach, and is based on interview data from three crisis events. The results show that the operating picture is influenced by information coming together from different sources and forming a snapshot of the event, a portrait which changes and is updated over time, while organisational belonging, role and occupationally specific knowledge provide a framework for and influence situational awareness. The results also show that the operating picture forms the basis for an occupationally specific and role-based situational awareness and its subsequent decision-making. Further studies on the relation between common operating picture, sense making and situational awareness are discussed.

This study focuses the gendered relations of the Military Academy of Karlberg. More specific the study is investigating the experiences among young women and men cadets of suppression techniques. The purpose of the study is to get more knowledge about the work climate and suppression techniques at the officers’ training program 2007/2010. The research questions employed for the study were:- Do the women and men officer students/cadets have any experiences of master suppressiontechniques at the officers’ training program?- What kind of master suppression techniques occur at the officer’s training program?- What kind of master suppression techniques do women experience?- What kind of master suppression techniques do men experience?The study is a survey and data were retrieved by a questionnaire sent out to the participants. The 30 participants were randomly chosen, out of a population of 120 students/cadets. The result of this study shows that a majority of the participants have experiences from being exposed to suppression techniques. When it comes to suppression techniques, there is a tendency that it targets women more frequently in comparison with men.

Women and Gender Perspectives in the Military compares the integration of women, gender perspectives, and the women, peace, and security agenda into the armed forces of eight countries plus NATO and United Nations peacekeeping operations. This book brings a much-needed crossnational analysis of how militaries have or have not improved gender balance, what has worked and what has not, and who have been the agents for change. The country cases examined are Sweden, the Netherlands, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Australia, and South Africa. Despite increased opportunities for women in the militaries of many countries and wider recognition of the value of including gender perspectives to enhance operational effectiveness, progress has encountered roadblocks even nearly twenty years after United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 kicked off the women, peace, and security agenda. Robert Egnell, Mayesha Alam, and the contributors to this volume conclude that there is no single model for change that can be applied to every country, but the comparative findings reveal many policy-relevant lessons while advancing scholarship about women and gendered perspectives in the military.

Framing the public in crisis2013In: Cultures of Disasters: An International Conference on Humanistic Disaster Studies - University of Oslo, November 6-8, 2013: Book of Abstracts, Oslo: University of Oslo , 2013, p. 40-Conference paper (Refereed)

There is quite some consensus that today’s international security environment has substantially changed following the end of the Cold War in 1989/90 and that this requires the transformation of modern armed forces from conventional ones to something else. This ‘something else’ may indeed be an expeditionary military. The military metamorphosis that is needed seems to be nothing less than a substantial overhaul of the armed forces in various dimensions. One obvious dimension is organizational structure. The second dimension is technology and especially armament technology where weapons and equipment need to be adapted to present-day conflict and combat challenges including a shift in focus of procurement policies. The third dimension rests with the assumption that the given, current security political landscape necessitates a change not only in the military’s organizational format and technological posture, but also in mindset. Changing the conventional military mindset towards one that is focused on expeditionary operations calls into question how such a transformation will influence the core values of the military. The fourth and final dimension is educating and training the soldiers because expeditionary operations call for additional skills and expertise compared to those required for a Cold War military mission.

The contributions to this book focus on the mindset and the core values of an expeditionary military and take different avenues to approach these themes. At times, they also reach out into the other dimensions. The book is divided into two parts. The first part covers concepts and conceptual approaches, while the second part contains contributions that basically carry case-study character. The contributors belong to a wide range of academic disciplines, which allows for different avenues and perspectives on our topic, thus enriching our knowledge of the problems involved. The book is of great interest and relevance to academia, military practitioners and political decision-makers.

49.

Fürst, Henrik

et al.

Swedish National Defence College, Department of Leadership and Management (ILM).

Purpose – With a particular focus on cultural understandings and the concepts behind welfare policies, the purpose of this paper is to analyse commonalities and dissimilarities in the patterns of social policy, and more precisely youth unemployment policies, in Sweden and Germany.

Design/methodology/approach – A document analysis of Swedish and German youth unemployment policies was conducted with regard to how the two welfare regimes’ policies define the underlying problem, the instruments through which this problem is tackled, and the aim of youth activation policies.

Findings – The findings show congruency concerning the definitions of the problem of youth unemployment, in which the unemployed are regarded as lacking in discipline, as well as in the policies through which the problem is tackled: through conditionality and pastoral power as policy tools. The solution of the problem on the other hand, found in the notion of the ideal worker to be produced, diverges between active entrepreneurs in one country, and blue-collar workers in the other. The authors conclude that the introduction of supranational policy concepts is not a matter of mere implementation, and that concepts like activation are reinterpreted according to differing cultural ideologies and accommodated into the context of particular welfare states.

Originality/value – This paper provides an innovative framework for the understanding of the influence of cultural understandings on policy making, but also on challenges facing activation governance on the one hand and European Union policy initiatives and transnational policy diffusion on the other.